


The Difference of Life and Death

by Purpledragon6



Category: Solar Opposites
Genre: Alternate Ending, Cherie makes a few powerful enemies, F/M, Gen, Hate to Love, Hurt/Comfort, Mentions of religious trauma, Past Relationship(s), Redemption
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-26
Updated: 2020-06-14
Packaged: 2021-03-03 05:22:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,029
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24399448
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Purpledragon6/pseuds/Purpledragon6
Summary: Cherie survives the events of the Wall and joins  team of unlikely allies to take Tim down.
Relationships: Tim/Cherie
Comments: 18
Kudos: 15





	1. Pain Without Love

_**A/N: Here we go.** _

_**Cherie's POV.** _

* * *

She remembered pain once.

During her life before the Wall, before Yumyulack- long before any of this. It was nothing compared to the white hot pain of the toothpick, or the hollow thump of her back hitting the hard ground. If she could get any air into, she'd scream in absolute agony, but she couldn't breathe. Lungs ached, legs were numb, hot blood dripped down her person in a way that made her stomach turn...

The outside world drummed loud in her ears. Crickets, families, cars driving by. All so loud and yet so far away... A world she would most likely never get to return to. 

_'We could find a way to get big again!' She had been so excited too._

As black spots began to dot her vision, and the noise of the outside world grew louder, she found it harder to think. To remember the life she once had and now would never have back...

And then, silence. 

* * *

**_One Year_ ** **_Earlier:_ **

_How many street signs had they passed?_

_She had stopped counting them after the first painful thump drummed in her temples. Through blury eyes, she had taken to watching the messy blend of the night crowd and billboard lights. Trying to find some comforting in the sickening yellow and red hues of the red light district._

_Was this stop her block, or another stop sign? It was impossible to tell, but right now she was praying to any God out there who was listening that it wasn't. She needed more time to sort things out- never wanting to take the day's problems home with her... What was it this time?_

_Her hair was too long, face too gaunt- her eyes were so bloodshot they were almost pink- maybe it was just the lack of sleep playing tricks on her again... She'd also begun seeing things too. Fleeting shadows that would run around her head whenever she'd get too comfortable. Their long spindle like fingers would claw at the corners of her eyes if she let them..._

_"Just need to sleep, Cherie..." She muttered to herself, "These late nights will be worth it when you graduate."_

_How long would her nap be this time? Just a five minute rest? 10 so she didn't suddenly collapse from exhaustion at work again? If she let it get to a full 30 then she'd probably wake up without her wallet again..._

_It have to be 5._

_As heavy eyes slipped closed, she took one final second to register all that was around her before letting the darkness surround her briefly._

_It hadn't always been this way._ _Once she vaguely recalled being happy. At some point, she had lost track of when they had been exactly... If she had to guess, it would be between graduating High School, moving away from her family as soon as she could, and deciding later on to go to culinary school with no help financially... No matter. She was independent and well on her way to a very successful career._

_She could handle a few more sleepless nights as a waitress._

_"Hey. Get up. We're here." The driver's snarky tone startled her awake._

_Out of habit, her band darted instantly for her pockets. To her relief, her wallet was still where she left it... No surprise there. She never had any trouble with this taxi driver._

_"Thanks..." Her head was swimming, and she felt more groggy than before she shut her eyes. But it would have to do._

_Sitting up, she dug out her wallet and fished out a couple of bucks, paid her fee, and gathered her things. Purse, wallet, phone, waitress uniform- that looked like everything. But to be on the safe side, she gave a final once over. All while ignoring the driver's impaitent huffing. Oh well... Shuffling out of the taxi, she sent a final wave over her shoulder before scurrying back into the dark, cold lobby of her place._

_"You're back early." A voice would call out to her from somewhere in the dark._

_It wasn't worth paying any mind. No one ever just wanted a friendly chat at her apartment. There was always some sort of malice behind those words, and she just was not up for a game tonight. There was a bottle of aspirin in her unit with her name on it._

_"Like Hell I'm waiting any longer... Today has been long enough." You could almost call it a "burst of energy", as she stumbled quickly up the *many* stairs to her floor._

_Just as cold and dark as the lobby, but the carpets were always wet and usually smelt like bleach-_

_"Eh... Not great for my head..." She half mused to no one in particular, shuffling along on bare feet until she reached a familiar, shit coloured door. There was a moments pause where she had to lean against it to rest up. Just enough that she could successfully get her keys into the lock on the third or fourth try._

_Better than yesterday._

_By then her heard was pounding. Like a drum being played by hot, sharp knives. Eyes felt like they were surely bleeding, and the pain mixed with the smell of the hall almost made her want to vomit. So with a final shove to the door, she stumbled into the hole in the wall she called home snd slammed the door shut._

_There was no use bothering with the lights (they only worked 1 out of 7 times anyhow). There was no use feeling around for anything. Living here long enough left her with a pretty good map of the place and where she kept her pills at... There should be two of something left out on the counter._

_"Just take whatever and lay down. You got this, Cherie." That seemed to be her peptalk of choice, and as her hands brushed over the tablets, she felt a glimmer of something good in her heart for once._

_One._

_Two._

_They slid down her throat as though it were a second nature. Set in almost instantly. A relief- Classes were in a couple hours and there was no way in Hell she could sleep with that headache._

_"Now maybe I'll get some sleep..." Wishful thinking again, as she stumbled in the dark, trying to find her bedroom._

_Cherie didn't even make it that far before she collapsed again. This time for the night, in a pile of her own unwashed clothes._

_This would surely lead to a sore neck the next day, but no matter. She could handle any pain._

_Or so she thought._

* * *

Light. 

Not the white light she had been taught about in church... And not the fires of Hell either... If she squinted hard enough, she'd swear there was a 48 on the light above her.

"A-a lightbulb...?" Cherie croaked, wincing at the pain that scratched at her throat. 

Her body felt numb- not painfully numb as it had been earlier. Rather- medicated. A gentle beep began to fill her ears as her senses slowly returned to her.

"W-where am-" She barely had enough strength left to finish that sentence. 

"Shh... Go back to sleep. We'll explain everything when you're well again." A voice whispered, somewhere that sounded far off.

She wanted to call out to the voice- to demand answers, and get them however she could... But her fight was gone for now and she felt so, so tired still. It could wait.

With a feeble attempt at a nod, the woman felt her eyes grow heavy as she slipped back into her memories once more. 


	2. Long Way Down

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cherie reflects on past events.

_**A/N: Double Update today!** _

* * *

_She remembered falling down the side of the house clearly. Her life rushing before her eyes, the feeling of_ _complete_ _weightlessness as she plummeted further to the ground… That much she all remembered clearly. Heck, she even remembered the sound her bones made as they shattered against the hard ground, and then- nothing. She remembered nothing but dark after that._

_“I’m… Dead…” Cherie thought out loud, keeping her eyes screwed shut, as it did not matter what she saw now._

_She was expecting darkness around her still. Just an empty void of nothingness… Freedom finally from the pain and suffering she would have must likely have gone through with a broken spine._

_“I would have been paralyzed…” She said, her voice being the only source of comfort to her in this trying time._

_Vaguely, she could still feel the shock of pain from where she hit the grou- No… She could feel a lot of pain. So much so that it was almost becoming unbearable. It was unlike the pain of the fall- it was like someone was driving a needle in and out of her back- A burn like the friction from a thread stretched across her back, each loop like a vertebra. Frantically, she tried to open her mouth to scream for- Anything. For help- to tell someone that she was still alive or- But nothing came out now._

_The burn and pain had spread now, her left eye forcing itself open. To her horror, there was no darkness. There was a fuzzy world that lay just beyond her vision, and a large needle heading straight towards her. Limp and unable to move, she was powerless to stop its trek for her face. The white hot pain was instant, and horrible enough that she soon forgot how to think and breathe._

_"Shh... Go back to sleep. We'll explain everything when you're well again."_

_Now, why did that sound so familiar?_

* * *

Its funny how the brain worked sometimes. It would block things from you, including physical strain and emotional discomfort… That was how she was able to sleep through what she could only describe to be her torture. When she awoke from it, she could blearily see the same light bulb from earlier- just a little bit clearer this time. She could also hear again. Birds chirping outside, the sound of passing cars- all of it was still there.

“Not dead…” It was a relief to hear her own voice again.

With that in mind, she focused all of her energy into moving an inch. Surprisingly, it was not as difficult as she thought it would be. She tried for a few more inches, before determining that it was safe for her to try and sit up. Taking a deep breath, she sat herself up slowly, expecting a crick in her spine or some shoot of pain- but there was none. Her back bent as simple as bending a piece of wire, and soon she was sitting upright, her arms folded in her lap.

“Thats a good sign.” A smile stretched across her lips, but it quickly fell.

It didn’t feel right… Her lips almost felt fuzzy and there wasn’t any give on her right side. None of it felt right anymore. The lack of any visible injuries- the easy in which she was able to get up, and still hear things around her...

“Somethings not right…” She whispered, forcing herself to open her eyes and look around.

She was laying in a hospital bed, constructed from a doll bed with a piece of felt laid on it for cushioning. Her regular uniform had been replaced by a thin white gown, and another strip of white lay over her legs. The same colour as the four walls that surrounded her... This was definitely a hospital of some kind. 

"But- how did anyone find me-?" Cherie wondered out loud. 

She had planned to toss her legs over the side of the bed- to get up and walk around- but found to her horror that despite the lack of pain, that part of her body was no longer connected to her brain... In short, she was stuck here. 

“Praise Jesse, you're awake!" A voice exclaimed suddenly, 

Cherie jerked up, startled by the sudden noise and frantically began to search for it. It didn't take long... The owner of the voice was right in front of her the moment she looked up. A nun, dressed in the same colours of the members of the Bowinian Church, but Cherie didn't recognize her at all. Not at all. 

"I'm- Where the hell am I?" No use beating around the bush.

"You're safe now, dear. Thats all that matters." The older woman replied, clasping both of Cherie's hands in her own. "We almost lost you a few times." 

"A few times-" 

"You were in pretty bad shape when you arrived, Cherie." Wait.

"You- You know my name?" Cherie gasped, only to find that the nun was no longer paying attention to her, but rather to a small chart at the side of the bed.

"Multiple lacerations, a broken arm, your back- Not to mention a stab wound through your abdomen... Thank Jesse it didn't hit any of your organs." A hand wave silenced the old woman finally.

"Oh geez- First of all- How did you know my name, and secondly if I was in such bad shape then why don't I feel any of it? How long was I out for?" She could feel her heart as it rapidly pounded in her chest. She felt- angry and scared and just wanted to go back to sleep and wake up when everything was back to normal. 

"Everyone in the Wall knows of Tim's Cherie," That name- just the sound of it made Cherie's blood run cold. "As for your injuries, you've been out for so long that they've since healed on their own... Most of them, that is. And we've kept up with your pain medicine, so its no surprise you don't feel a thing." 

"So its safe to assume I've been out for weeks now...?" 

"Try months, child."

If her blood was cold before, it was ice now. The red head felt her whole body begin to tremble, even the parts that she couldn't feel anymore. Her head was pounding already as more questions began to pop up faster than she could process. What had happened in that time? Who brought her here? Where was here!? 

"You're very lucky you were brought here when you were."

She had jumped at the sound of the voice right next to her ear. The old woman was looking at her down the length of her nose- seemingly studying her. Perhaps trying to read the frazzled woman's jumbled thoughts for her. Then, the nun's face went sullen, almost looking as though she no longer trusted Cherie.

"Who- Who brought me here?" Cherie heard herself mutter, her gaze dropping down to her lap.

"Some man in a white suit. He didn't stay very long." 

"A whi- The Duke!?" A bit of a stretch, but there was only one man who fit the description and location... 

"It would seem so," The nun hummed, her voice now laced with a sarcastic and uncaring edge... Whether that was directed at Cherie or the mention of the Duke-

"Whatever you're thinking-" Now it was Cherie's turn to be silenced by a hand wave.

"You were brought here by the Duke after Tim told the Wall you were dead... I saw the way you froze when you heard his name, child. What else am I supposed to think?" 

If she had control of her legs- Cherie would have been up and out of that bed, ready to find Tim and strangle him. But alas, revenge would have to wait... 

"Tim tried to kill me and threw me out of a hole in the wall! Theres a hole- We could have all escaped-" Another hand wave.

"Yes, we know of the hole in the wall... Or rather, a select few know of it... But it is safer in the Wall than it would be to go outside and be eaten by an owl." 

_Now, where had she heard that before? Oh. Thats right._

"Funny, a certain *jerk* said that same thing before he fucking stabbed me!" Cherie growled.

This time around, the nun cut her off with a harsh slap to the face. Steel coloured eyes bore into Cherie's brown ones with enough malice to make her wince. Whatever distrust Cherie thought she had seen on the woman's face was now on full display, and all at once, the younger woman was made very aware of her situation... She was at the mercy of these people whether she liked it or not...

* * *

Her legs were still wrapped up tightly by the time they came in to move her to what she believed would be a holding cell. The nun had left her room shortly after the slap, and Cherie had only picked up bits and pieces of her conversation with someone outside her room. She kept her head bowed, her hair in her face (or rather, what was left of it, she found), and her hands tucked in at her sides as they placed her into a nearby wheelchair (constructed of legos). Men in white- which she assumed were doctors- gave her a final once over before confirming that she was healed enough to move. 

They all looked like a worse wreck than she probably did. Like the nun, not one of them looked like they trusted her. She gulped loudly. As much as she kept telling herself that they wouldn't have wasted all of that time helping her just to kill her- it was still nerve wracking to be left wondering why... If the nun's reaction to her speaking out against Tim was any indication of what was to come- She didn't want to think that far.

"We're going to move you now." One of the doctor's said, his voice bringing Cherie back to reality. "Are you ready?"

"As I'll ever be." She hummed, the only witty reply she felt like making. 

"Very well."

With that, the chair was pushed forward, out in a darkened hallway. Too dark for Cherie's eye to make anything out.

 _'Either theres no lighting, or they don't want me to know where I am.'_

Fingers were suddenly pressing her back, and she could almost feel the blood and warmth suddenly rush out of them. The sudden cold made her blood run cold and her heart to somehow still further than it had already stilled.

"You have stitches- In less than a weeks time, a doctor will be coming in to remove them." A voice from beside her spoke. "It would be best if you focused on healing instead of where you are."

"How is that-" The chair was halted suddenly. 

"We're here." The same voice spoke. 

A pair of arms lifted her up and brought her to a door at the edge of the hall. She couldn't see it, but she could hear it as it creaked open, leading into an equally dark room. Another gulp, briefly fearing her stay would be in total darkness- something she had been afraid of since she was a child- Only to be dashed by a light clicking on as soon as they entered the room... It resembled a hotel, with minimal furniture. A desk, a bed, a bathroom- but nothing she could use as a weapon, it seemed. 

_'Crap...'_

"Welcome to your new home." 

"Gee, thanks." Cherie mumbled, wincing as she was placed on the bed. "How long do I get to stay in this crap hole for?"

"Depends." Her escort muttered bitterly, "You're free to move about as you please, but just know that we will be keeping a close watch on you."

"I'll be on my best behavior then." She scoffed sarcastically, laying back on the bed. "You can go now. Considering I can only sit up and wallow in my misery."

"... See that you do." With that, the door was shut and a lock clicked loudly behind it. 

It was official. She was now stuck with no way out... Great. 

"Why me." The woman sighed, sitting up just enough that she could catch a glimpse of herself in the bathroom mirror.

The first thing she saw was her face. Crisscrossing stitches muddled what was once a beautiful face. One covering completely across the corner of her left cheek, two just inches apart on her right, a long row held her nose in place on her face, and several smaller stitches seemingly held her mouth in place. Swallowing thickly, she undid her gown and forced herself to turn slightly and look down at her naked back...

Just as the doctor had said, a thick, black yarn was stitched neatly down her back. In the middle of the stitch, there was a thick piece of wire, that bent just as she did… A thick piece of wire that was seemingly replacing her spine.

"They really pulled out all the stops when they put me back together..." She mused bitterly, "Just wish I could figure out why..."


	3. For My Faults

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another Flashback!

_**A/N: Another flashback. Why? I dunno.** _

_**Probably because it ties in to the reason why they didn't let Cherie die.** _

* * *

_**Years ago, Before The Wall: Cherie is 17.** _

_One, sunny afternoon, Cherie sat at herself at her desk, reveling in the unusual quiet of her room. The washer in the laundry room next to her's was almost silent, her sister wasn’t being her pesky self, and for ONCE her writing was flowing beautifully. It was a rare treat; a good, quiet Saturday!_

_“… Somethings wrong.” She huffed, slamming her sheet down on the desk quickly and standing. “I never have good days here…”_

_Sooner of later, something stupid and zany was going to march itself into her room and spoil her concentration… Or spoil it more than she already spoiled it just by questioning her environment. It wouldn’t take long. What would it be this time? Mom signing her up for the church choir again? Dad needing her to hold a flashlight for 6 hours in the hot sun? Her sister asking for more money? It had to be something._

_'Or- maybe nothing at all.' She thought._

_Then, from downstairs, Her father's loud voice sounded._

_“Cherie! You’ve got a call on line 1. It’s your mother! Its important!" Of course it was._

_… Well, she had been right about something zany and stupid. She had only been wrong to doubt it for a minute there._

_With an exasperated sigh, the redhead reached for her phone (which SHE paid for) and answered it. While one of the perks of having her own phone was not having to share it with her nagging family, the downside definitely was the constant phone calls that she had learned never to ignore. All of it made her want to just disconnect her phone!_

_No such luck there._

_“Hello?” She muttered, hoping to get this conversation over with._

_“Well, it’s nice that you could pick up for once! Were you too busy writing again!?” Always a joy to hear from her mother. “You know, I sometimes call when I need something from you!”_

_“… Hello, mother-” Cherie began again._

_“But that’s besides the point, dear. Your father and I are going out for the evening and I need you to watch your sister for a few hours.” Cherie's blood ran cold. "Can you handle that?"_

_It was a lesser known fact that Cherie did NOT care for children. She super did NOT care for her little sister. A small, rat faced 10 year old who was the bane of her existence. Ever since the kid was born, it was as though she had made her life's mission to make Cherie absolutely miserable. Spitting up on her favorite Easter dress, tattling on her for EVERYTHING, always stealing her stuff and then 'borrowing' money for whatever... Its what made Cherie's choice to move out for college and never have her own children all the easier. That kid was walking, talking birth control._

_"Mom, you know Carol and I don't get along. With your luck, you'll get back to the house only half burned down-" She exclaimed, pressing the phone closer to her cheek._

_She could just see it now. Just her and her sister, home alone with all of the unsecured knives and scissors- Forget their mom's luck. She'd be lucky if she had any hair left after the night! It was a disaster waiting to happen._

_"Tough. Its just one night." Her mother sneered, "Try not to mess this up, honey. Its good practice for when you have your own kids-"_

_"Like Hell am I giving you any grandkids, mom." Cherie scoffed, "As soon as I can, I'm getting my tubes-"_

_"You'll change your mind. Bye, Cherie."_

_And with that, the line went dead. As soon as it did, Cherie glared bitterly at the device and threw it as hard as she could onto her bed, because so much for a quiet Saturday alone with that hell hound._

_"I will NEVER change my mind about any of this."_

* * *

**Present Day:**

"God, if you're listening, I take back EVERYTHING I said back then." The woman groaned, hanging her head on the bathroom's toilet miserably. 

All of her stressing- all of the pain killers- it was making her sick to her stomach and the toilet barely had enough water for her to drown herself! What she wouldn't give for that sweet release of death- or to have her old life back- Hell, she'd even take her family back if she could. 

"Even that rat-face sister of mine- I would spend every damn day with her just to get out of here!" Wherever here was, it wasn't where Cherie wanted to be. She preferred the Wall to it... At least in the wall, she was always too busy surviving something terrible to be left alone with her thoughts and feelings. 

These horrible, sickening, mind boggling feelings of hers that just kept popping up and changing at a moments notice. Every. Single. Freaking. Time. she tried to relax and find herself, there was a new mental battle she was fighting. And as stated before, she'd take a battle with her sister over one with herself... 

"I wonder if they even know I'm gone..." She whispered, feeling fat tears as they gathered behind her eyes and then poured down her face, "I wonder if anyone knows we're gone..."

It had been years since she spoke to her family, and she didn't know many people besides a few regulars at the restaurant. Did any of them notice she was gone? Did anyone care? Or were she and the others just a group of faces that no one chose to commit to memory long enough to wonder-? How many of them had loved ones who didn't even realize that-

"Cherie, is everything alright?" It was the nun... The same one who was *always* watching her. 

"Yeah... M'fine." Cherie replied, pulling herself up off the bathroom floor and over to her bed. She tossed herself on it as hard as she had once thrown her phone. "Just feeling sick from nerves is all."

"Hm... I can't say I'm surprised." The older woman replied, turning swiftly from her spot at the door. "Carry on."

"Always speaking in riddles..." Cherie sighed, rolling pathetically onto her side and pulling her knees to her chest. She felt sore all over still, but figured it was from not moving as much as she should have while in her coma. "Its what I like about this place... Always being fucking confused and miserable." 

Now, she was just tired. There was no use trying to do anything else except lay there and think on her many regrets in life. Or rather- her old life that was... There was nothing she regretted from her time in the Wall except trusting TIm... And Pedro... God, she wondered if the boy may have had a mother or another father who was out there, tirelessly searching for him. She wondered just as much if she had the same...

"One things for sure... As soon as I get out of here, I'm going to track mine down... And thank her for everything..."


	4. Jesse

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I always thought Tim's name was Steve. I don't know why. No one else in the show is named Steve, but he looks more like a Steve and that bothers me. You know?" 
> 
> I'm sure this will be brought up later.

**A/N: In an effort to clear out my story bin, this fic is actually an amalgamation of several unpopular/abandoned fics of mine that have been edited to fit the story. I'm kinda pleased with it.**

* * *

There was something almost funny about it all.

In the space of a few months- apparently- her whole life had gone from one lifestyle to another, only to return to where it had once been, now just a little bit different... Perhaps a little too different. Stuck in a place she didn't want to be, and a deep desire to pack her shit and leave. The difference being the 'place'. The old one being her childhood home, and this one seeming more like something out of a nightmare rather than something tangible. Like someone else had designed this life for her. Even the faded wooden table and empty bowls from her breakfast that morning felt like someone else's childhood toys. Old, forgotten, lost somewhere between then and now...

"There you are!" On, the nun was also new. 

Out of habit, the young woman automatically tensed up and wheeled around as best she could, expecting to find the tip of a toothpick or an angered expression glaring back at her. Instead, she found her- a look of forced neutrality etched onto her older face. The look alone sent a shiver down her spine- If she could feel it, that was... The knowledge that she would most likely never feel it again made her uneasy. 

"Where else would I be?" Cherie asked, casting a quick glance towards her empty bed. Part of her wished she could avoid this whole conversation by just curling back up and pretending to be asleep (as she had often done), but it was too late for that now... 

"Never mind that. I am under strict orders to help you pack up your things to make room in this space for the incoming occupant." The nun said sternly, entering the room with an ease that Cherie could only wish she had. 

"'Incoming occupant'?" From her time in the Wall, she had learned that this usually meant a former inmate or a refugee. Though, in her time here, she would guess this meant another patient/prisoner of this place...

"Yes, now, gather up whatever you want to keep and the rest will be moved out." The nun went on, casting a look of disdain towards the discarded breakfast dishes. "Starting with those."

"And ending with- Nothing in this room is mine!" Cherie exclaimed, casting a wide gesture with her good arm. "Anything of mine is still in the Wall!"

A bait statement. A tactic she had picked up from a thief who she never expected to make an acquaintance with- but heck, most of the people in her life now were people she never in a million years expected to be associated with. Whoever she needed to know to survive in this place. 

_'You learn a lot of interesting things from liars.'_ She thought quietly, half fearing the nun could read her thoughts. 

"... I can't help you with the move if you don't pack up first." Well, that backfired. There was hope that the Nun would have responded to her comment with SOME indication of where they were currently holding her- she hadn't expected to be completely ignored!

"I don't have a lot to pack up. I planned on throwing most of this away." Not a complete lie.

"Very well, I will let them know..." The older woman quipped, running her gloved hand over a dusty shelf. 

"Someone else needs this room, and-."Cherie shrugged, "Might as well clear it all out." 

A grimace tore across the nun's mouth and Cherie tensed up without having to think of it. The nun must have seen it, as she then quickly added, "I mean- its nice of you to give up your space and all for- our guest. And speaking of- you have an appointment today." 

"O-oh...?" 

She could feel an awkward silence approaching that she wasn't prepared for. So with a deep breath, she continued to speak.

"What is it for this time? The doctor already came and took care of my stitches earlier-" A hand wave, and the former-waitress knew that called for silence.

"Its only a precaution, dear." A small smile formed on the woman's face, and she clapped a firm yet gentle hand on Cherie's shoulder. The first show of genuine kindness the young woman had seen in a long time... It felt like the first flower of spring after a long, hard winter. "We wouldn't want anything happening to you."

And there it was... The eeriness of it had had returned with just that statement. Bringing with it a slow-building panic that Cherie knew she wouldn't be able to stop until she was keeled over the toilet again. She hoped the nun didn't notice the colour draining from her face... An uncomfortable silence had fallen between the two by then, and she felt her heart rate picking up again. Once again it felt like this was her day of judgement, looming over and watching her, waiting for her to mess up again and strike her down once and for all.

"Let me help with that." The old women's voice wasn't what surprised Cherie, but rather the way she so casually sat down beside her and offered her the wastebasket from the floor. Between the actual assistance and the kindness, Cherie was instantly suspicious. This was the same woman who slapped her for backtalk and was currently keeping her prisoner in this damn place! There was no way she'd fall for this 'nice woman' act...

As soon as she got done puking her breakfast up, that was.

Without a show of fear or resentment, she took the basket and proceeded to do just that. As she did, did the other begin patting her back gently. Had it been anyone else, Cherie would go as far as to say that the act almost seemed motherly... In a sense, that was. 

"It'll go by fast." What did that mean? "Then we can move the new stuff in."

"R-right."

Slowly, the puking stopped, and as soon as she gave the older woman a thumbs up did workers come in, and everything except the bed was discarded. Either in a bin for what Cherie assumed was storage or a sack for garbage. However, despite how rapidly empty the room was now, she couldn't feel it. There was no sadness or melancholy to be felt. This room held no place in her heart, and most likely never would.

"Okay. Thats everything then." The nun leaned out the door and called. "Now we just have to move in the new furniture and-"

"I know." Cherie cut in, startling herself with how weary her own voice sounded. "... I just need a minute."

"To say goodbye to this room?" And for once she sounded concerned for Cherie. "Or are you feeling ill again?"

"No... Just a break." Cherie hummed, lowering herself to sit on the floor. "This is someone else's place now... Maybe the root of a new beginning or something-"

Great, now she was feeling tired just from sitting and watching other people do work... After years of always trying to step in and help others, it made her feel a little useless. Hell, she was leading a damn rebellion just a few months ago! Sitting on a bed while others worked around her shouldn't warrant wanting a nap...

"That's a good way of putting it." The nun mused as she took long strides over to the younger woman and parked herself on the floor besides her. "Thats a very mature way to look at this..."

"No. Its the only way to look at this." 

"...Who knows. Maybe it'll be your new beginning." She sighed. "A bigger family, a fresh start at life..."

Now that- that was just wrong. 

"A what-?" A panic was building up in her again- but it wasn't the same as before. No- this time she felt like she was truly on the verge of an absolute breakdown. Like she needed to get up and run as far as she could, as fast as she could. Somewhere- anywhere else but here. 

"'A what"? Dear, you sound as though you-" A pause. All at once, the older woman's kind expression melted back into her firm and bitter one. "Come now. You'll see at your appointment..."

"As though I what!? Why can't you people just tell me whats going on!?" A hand wave- this time as an offering to help Cherie off of the floor and into the wheelchair that had just been brought in. With no other choice, and wanting answers, she took it. 

Anything to get out of this room and to end the mind games once and for all.

* * *

The light-bulb was back... And brighter than ever. 

When they arrived at- wherever they were going, Cherie was taken from her wheelchair and placed on what she could only describe as being the front cover of a squishy journal. It was comfortable at least- more comfortable than her bed had been, and the smell of plastic was reminding her of happier times of Middle School. In face, she vaguely recalled wanting a bed made out of squishy journals then too... Huh, maybe being small wasn't all that bad-

No. It wasn't all that bad, it was completely bad and it sucked.

"So what now? Are we just waiting? Why wouldn't we do this back at the room?" 

"Patience. She'll be here soon." The nun whispered, "She only works when he isn't home."

"'She'? Who?" Ugh, so many questions and not enough answers... This was JUST like in Middle School...

The moment she stopped speaking, she felt it. A low, rhythmic shaking through the floor. Faint at first, but slowly building the closer and louder it got. There were also voices, one was masculine and disproving in sound, and the other was feminine and sweet sounding- Now, what they were saying, she could only guess. And then knew, because not even a beat later and she could hear a door come flying open. 

"Not now, Korvo! I'm busy! I'm seeing a patient today!" A little girl's voice called, 

"Fine, but be sure to clean up your dolls this time! If the Puppa gets ahold of them I am not buying you a new one!" The masculine voice, probably Korvo, called back, cut off by a sudden door slam. 

_Wait- she had heard that voice before while in the Wall- Was that-_

Sitting up as quick as she could, Cherie almost screamed when she came face to face with a large, green alien. Despite the bright and happy smile it wore, Cherie sure as shit wasn't willing to trust it at all.

"Jesse!" The nun called, "Thank you for seeing us on such shor-"

"This is Jesse!? As in the alien the Bowinian church worships!? That Jesse!?" The bubble you get in your chest when a genuine laugh was coming on and she didn't know why. Cherie certainly didn't feel like laughing. 

"Correct. We are the few humans who have been given the honor of meeting her and staying in her very own dollhouse." So thats where they had been keeping her... That certainly explained the doll furniture and dishes... But it didn't explain anything else!

"If she knows we're here and want to go back to our own lives, then why doesn't she help us!?" Had anyone bothered to ask her that!?

To seemingly everyone's surprise, Jesse answered. 

"Well, I would, but my brother hid all of our grow rays, and I don't want him to get arrested for kidnapping so many people- Sooo..." That kind smile slipped a little, "And some of the human's don't want to go back. And I think Yumyulack would be upset if I just got rid of his entire collection-"

""Collection!?" Kidnapped humans isn't a collection!" If she could run, she would. She'd run right up to that alien and stab her in the eye-

"Cherie, calm down!" The nun snapped, suddenly pushing the red-head back against the cover. "Getting worked up like this isn't going to help any."

"Like Hell it won't!" A harsh shove sent the Nun crashing to the ground, and Cherie couldn't help but smirk in satisfaction when she heard the old woman grunt in pain. It seemed she still had some fight left in her, all things considered-

Until the little girl alien picked her up and set her in the palm of her hand. Then she felt any and all fight drain out of her near instantly. 

"You sure are angry." Jesse cooed, "You used to be the nicest waitress ever-!"

"Then your damn brother shrunk me and I almost got killed half a million times! One of those times was by an ex whose a crazy cult leader now!" _Airing her grievances to an alien... Damn Cherie, you've now sunk to a new low..._

"Oh! That just sounds terrible!" Jesse gasped, patting Cherie's head with her finger, "But don't you worry. You and your little one will be safe in my dollhouse. No one ever dies in there." 

"Me and my what-?" Cherie felt the air around her grow thick. Was this the alien doing it, or was it the anxiety? She couldn't tell anymore... It could also be altitude sickness. They were pretty high up after all. "What are you talking about!?"

In an instance, Jesse's smile had returned, and the finger that was once patting Cherie's head was now poking her abdomen carefully. It was in that moment, that split second rather that Cherie realized the bit of distance that was still left between them. A slight swell from her person keeping Jesse from coming any further...

"Oh God no..." Now she was wondering if a fall from this height could kill her for real this time... If anyone would let her, that is. Jesse would probably stop her from doing it.

"Congratulations! You're going to have a baby! Isn't that exciting!?"


End file.
